Memorandum of Law: Case Review
To: Alice Marsh, Esq.
From: Japheth O’cklo
Date: x/x/2022
Re: Howard v. Beachside Country Club and Sanford; wrongful death
Statement of Facts
Allen and Nancy Howard would like to sue Beachside Country Club and the hosts of a New Year’s Eve party for serving alcohol to their seventeen year old son, Peyton. Peyton was killed in an automobile accident after leaving the party on December 31, 2019.
On the night of the accident, Peyton attended a party at Beachside Country Club. Hilda and Charles Sanford (the parents of Peyton’s friend, Charles Sanford) were the hosts of the party. Mr. and Mrs. Howard were not invited to the party, but other adults were present at the party. Peyton attended the party with his parents’ permission. Soft drinks and food were served. There was also a cash bar at which guests could pay for alcoholic beverages. The country club received all the profits from the sale of alcohol and provided bartenders for the party.
Peyton had a reputation (among his friends who attended Beach High School, a private high school in Vero Beach) for being a heavy drinker and was arrested once for driving under the influence (he pled guilty to reckless driving so he was not convicted of driving under the influence). During the party Peyton purchased at least six alcoholic beverages (several beers and two mixed drinks). He was not asked for identification, although he looked like a teenager. Mrs. Howard stated, “All of my friends were amazed that he was seventeen; they all said that he looked thirteen or fourteen.”
After the party, Peyton was killed when his car collided with a tree. An autopsy revealed a blood alcohol level in excess of the legal limit.
Questions Presented
- Whether hosts of a party can be held liable for the death of a seventeen-year-old when he was served alcoholic beverages at the party and died as a result of driving in an intoxicated state upon leaving the party.
- Whether a Country club can be held liable for wrongful death of a seventeen-year-old who purchased alcoholic beverages without being asked for identification and died as a result of driving under influence.
Statutes
Florida Statutes § 562.11 (1) (a) (1) (2019) states, in part, “A person may not sell, give, serve, or permit to be served alcoholic beverages to a person under 21 years of age or permit a person under 21 years of age to consume such beverages …. A person who violates this subparagraph commits a misdemeanor of the second degree ….”
Florida Statutes § 768.125 (2019) states, in part, “A person who … willfully and unlawfully sells or furnishes alcoholic beverages to a person not of lawful drinking age … may become liable for injury or damage caused by or resulting from the intoxication of such minor ….”
Discussion
In assessing whether the Sanfords are liable for Peyton Howard’s death, Bankston v. Brennan, 507 So.2d 1385 (Fla. 1987), is useful. In Bankston, the plaintiffs were injured when they were struck by a vehicle being driven by the defendant Brian Brennan, a minor, who attended a party hosted by the Ladikas. The defendant was served alcoholic beverages at the party. The plaintiffs sued the defendant and the Ladikas, alleging the Ladikas were liable for their injuries, under Florida Statutes § 768.125. The circuit court dismissed the complaint for failure to state a cause of action and the DCA affirmed and certified a question of great public importance: “DOES SECTION 768.125, FLORIDA STATUTES, CREATE A CAUSE OF ACTION, AGAINST A SOCIAL HOST, AND IN FAVOR OF A PERSON INJURED BY AN INTOXICATED MINOR WHO WAS SERVED ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES BY THE SOCIAL HOST?” The Florida Supreme Court answered the question in the negative and held § 768.125 did not create social host liability; therefore, the Ladikas were not liable for the injuries incurred by the plaintiffs. Similarly, the Sanfords will not be held liable for Peyton Howard’s death; the Florida Supreme Court found that Florida Statutes § 768.125 limits social host liability.
Beachside Country Club may be found liable for Peyton Howard’s death, according to French v. City of West Palm Beach, 513 So. 2d 1356 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 1987), and McCarthy v. Danny’s West, 421 So.2d 756 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 1982). In French v. City of West Palm Beach, 513 So. 2d 1356 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 1987).
Discuss the two cases listed above.
In French v. City of West Palm Beach, 513 So. 2d 1356 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 1987), the plaintiff filed a suit for personal injuries sustained as the result of an automobile accident. The plaintiff alleged she was a minor at the time of the accident and that defendant, through its employees, served her liquor shortly before the accident; the plaintiff was not asked for identification. The plaintiff contented, in her complaint, that the defendant’s 3rd amended complaint failed to include sufficient appropriate facts to establish that they willfully sold liquor to the plaintiff. The plaintiff alleged in paragraph 9 of Count II and paragraph 16 of Count III that, the defendant as principle, and by way of its agents, servants, or employees served alcohol to the Plaintiff who appeared to be a minor and who was in fact a minor on January 13, 1984. The defendant had a duty to check the identification and age of the plaintiff before selling alcohol to her in accordance to the Florida State laws. The defendant failed and neglected to check the identification to verify her age. On review, the DCA considered as true, all well pleaded allegations of the complaint. Complaints by the appellant included the conclusory allegations that defendant willfully and unlawfully sold the alcoholic beverages to the plaintiff. The DCA found the defendant had a duty to check for identification, according to Florida Statutes § 562.11. Similarly, Beachside Country Club had a duty to check/verify Payton’s identification before selling liquor, which it failed, neglected, and ignored. Beachside Country Club, would thus, be liable for wrongful death.
According to McCarthy v. Danny’s West, 421 So. 2d 756 (Fla. Dist. App. 1982), Beachside Country Club may be found liable for Payton Howard’s death. In McCarthy v. Danny’s West, 421 So. 2d 756 (Fla. Dist. App. 1982), the plaintiff appealed from a summary judgment in favor of defendant in a wrongful death action. The plaintiff, a seventeen-year-old son entered the defendants bar, was served liquor, became intoxicated, and died later that evening in an intoxicated state. While in the bar, the plaintiff’s was in a company of a 30-year old adult. While in the bar, the plaintiff was not checked for identification. The trial court entered summary judgment for the defendant, on the theory that the accident was unforeseeable. The trial court held that the accident was unenforceable, a ruling which was rejected by the DCA. The DCA disapproved any policy protecting a bar from liability for intentional sale of liquor to a known minor who happens to be accompanied by an adult. Similarly, Beachside Country Club will be held liable for Peyton’s death.